A New "Favourite Play" In The Making: Reviewing 'Wonder Boy' at Bristol Old Vic

★★★★ |“That was the moment I knew he would be okay. Fly to the moon Wonder Boy.”

And indeed, he flew his way to Bristol Old Vic, where a cast of five dazzled audiences in a short but spell-bounding production of under 100 minutes.

Wonder Boy tells the story of Sonny (Hilson Agbangbe), as he enters a fresh school due to a new foster placement. Not only is he dealing with this unnervingly new environment in Year 8, but he also struggles with a stammer – something that he is ashamed to admit. As a result, he tries to stay silent when he has to speak, but this situation is made worse when he is ordered to participate in the school’s production of Hamlet. It’s up to Wainwright (Eva Scott) and Roshi (Naia Elliott-Spence) to keep him under control and build his confidence.

The company of Wonder Boy. Photo supplied by the production.

The simple set of a backdrop, steps leading up to an onstage exit, and two small platforms at the front bring the story to life, complete with innovative captioning for the pre-show announcements as well as during the show itself. As the story mixes English and British Sign Language, it helps the audience understand the story better. The different fonts and colours (and sometimes shocked pikachus) used for different characters and their emotions is a really interesting detail that I particularly enjoyed.

The play is full of laughs and equally poignant moments, especially within the blossoming connection that Sonny and Wainwright share as they get to know each other more. Both of them become more relaxed around each other and open up about revelations of themselves which have never been articulated out loud before. Over time, they come to realise that they are more alike than they initially expect.

A few amazingly funny instances to point out are Roshi’s amazing description of Hamlet: as someone who hasn’t seen a production of it besides the obvious “to be or not to be” monologue, I got to understand this Shakespearean classic so much more. Fish and Wainwright's play fight towards the end of the show definitely elicited guffaws, whilst another moment to remember was the dangerously close destruction of a LEGO Millennium Falcon (as a Lego fan myself, I had to hold my breath at a fair few close calls!).

The company of Wonder Boy. Photo supplied by the production.

Towards the resolution of the show, there was only one story-related question I had – which was to do with the abrupt and unexplained ending of Wainwright's arc. We didn’t get the proper closure we needed for a brilliant, hopeful duo that we spent 80% of the show following and rooting for. There is a silver lining, though, in the form of a really poignant finale as we see the moment when Sonny goes up on stage and foam letters are placed on the stage, spelling the line he has to say... but is he able to do it? See the play on tour near you and find out!

Ultimately, while I do have very very small nit picks with Wonder Boy, it is easily one of my favourite shows I’ve seen this year. If I could give plays half-stars in my ratings, this would be a very easy 4.5 stars.

Wonder Boy plays at Bristol Old Vic until 21 September.